Unity Christian’s Fisher breaks his neck, will be out six weeks

Unity Christian senior T.J. Fisher wears a neck brace during warmups before the Crusaders played at Zeeland West on Friday, Dec. 1, 2023. He will miss six weeks of the basketball season. (Photo | Lenny Padilla).

ZEELAND, Mich. - T.J. Fisher, a senior at Hudsonville Unity Christian, will miss the next six weeks of the basketball season after he suffered a fracture in his neck.

The 6-foot-2 shooting guard fractured the C7 disc in his neck after an innocuous dunk on Tuesday during Unity Christian’s first game of the season. 

“In warmups, I went up to dunk,” Fisher said. “When I landed (on on my feet) I felt a pain in my neck. It just got worse and worse during the game.”

Fisher played the entire game.

“It was killin’ me. It hurt super bad,” he said. “I tried to just push through it. At the end of the game, I went to the trainer and he thought it might have something to do with the muscles (in my neck).”

Fisher said he will see a specialist soon.

“We go to a spinal specialist in the next week and he will give us the deciding factor of what I can or can’t do,” he said.

Unity Christian senior Colin Nieuwenhuis said the Crusaders will miss Fisher, who was wearing a neck brace before Unity Christian’s game at Zeeland West on Friday.

“It hurts a lot,” he said. “He brings a lot to the table offensively. He’s our go-to guy so having him out hurts. We know he’ll come back and he’ll deliver for us.”

Fisher and Nieuwenhuis each averaged 11 points per game last season, which led the team.

Unity already is without starting center Jake Chapman, who will miss the entire season after suffering cardiac arrest two months ago during the football season. The junior has recovered but isn’t allowed to play sports this year.